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Prince Philip's retirement is moment in British history

It involved establishing - with some degree of urgency - that the Queen was still breathing.

And then establishing, with a similar degree of urgency, whether Australia and America were right or wrong to be speculating about the Duke of Edinburgh's health - or lack of it.

Pretty quickly, I was able to tell those who needed to know that the Monarch and her husband were alive and well and wrote a Facebook post accordingly - yet it was still not 6am.

But it left the next obvious question: what on earth was this announcement from Buckingham Palace which had got social media in parts of the world wrongly killing off one or other of the senior members of the Royal Family?

The royal couple on Buckingham Palace during the Queen's 90th birthday celebrations. Credit: PA

It wasn't an abdication, because we know the Queen's view on that (she won't).

It left a mixture of retirement, moving house (palace), Prince Harry's engagement or Kate's third baby.

So what to tell ITV's Good Morning Britain (in whose studio I now found myself sitting)?

Whilst we couldn't say what was due to be announced, it was important for us to say what wasn't.

In an age where many millions reach for their phone and social media as soon as they wake up, we had a responsibly to give some facts: namely that the Queen and Duke were still very much enjoying being the Queen and Duke.

The Queen might be the longest serving Monarch in British history but the Duke of Edinburgh has also earned his place Britain's longest reigning consort.

He has been in the public eye and part of our national life for seven decades.

A man who modernised the royal family, established the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme, gave a high profile to hundreds of charities, made people laugh, made people cringe, but above all gave everything he had to supporting his wife, The Queen.

We know he gave up his navy career for her, we know he walked a few paces behind her wherever they went, we know he could be blunt and, at times, brutally honest.